Ridiculous matchups like Floyd Mayweather vs. Logan Paul are killing combat sports

Ridiculous matchups like Mayweather vs. Paul are killing combat sports

When it comes to violence in sports, it is obvious that you will see the majority of it in combat sports. The objective of most combat sports is to incapacitate your opponent until they quit or are unable to continue. Unfortunately, with the rise in popularity of the Paul brothers and the numerous number of platforms willing to host their “boxing” events, we begin to lose the art of the sport.

It is difficult to watch two people bludgeon one another in a ring or Octagon. If this took place in the street, any capable bystander would rush to break the two parties up promptly. But when it is presented to us in a ring it is a different story, these individuals are highly trained and are aware of how to defend themselves properly.

As spectators we accept the violent aspects of the sport because we know that the competitors are highly trained athletes that live to fight.

In come the Paul brothers, along with whatever platform is willing to sponsor their fights (and who wouldn’t?). Thus far we have seen Jake Paul smash a YouTuber, a retired basketball player, and a retired MMA champion who needs a hip replacement, two of them ending with a violent strike to the head.

The thing that all three opponents of Jake had in common was they shouldn’t have been in a boxing ring.

To put it simply, events like these are tarnishing the art of combat sports. No longer are fans tuning in to watch two highly trained athletes pit their martial art against one another. We now have fans tuning in to watch Jake handing out concussions to unworthy opponents, with commentary to match the ridiculousness of the spectacle.

This is concerning because the seriousness of what happens in a fight is lost, and people simply tune in to ingest violence. Many of these fighters spend their entire lives crafting their art, fine tuning their body and skill to perfection. Now, to obtain a fight that will be seen worldwide, you simply have to agree to it.

There is also the aspect of money, which greatly influences people to take these unethical fights. For example, when Ben Askren fought Jorge Masvidal, he was paid $210,000 for the fight, in comparison to his payout against Jake being $500,000.

We see this again with the travesty of a fight that will take place this weekend. Floyd Mayweather will put his undefeated record of 50 – 0 against Logan Paul’s extremely underwhelming record of 0 – 1, having lost to a rapper.

So why would Mayweather fight a man who has yet to prove he can even box? Because as Mayweather put it, he can go fight a boxer and make 35 – 50 million or fight a YouTuber, “have fun” and make 100 million or more. While the choice seems obvious, it implies a frightening future for the sport.

What this means is that it no longer matters if the opponents are evenly matched or not, as we saw in Jake’s last two fights. No longer are your fighting credentials important, but how many followers you have on your social media accounts.

Now, there is nothing wrong with entertaining crowds for money, but the art of the sport is being tarnished. If we allow events like these to continue, they will become more and more unevenly matched until someone is seriously injured.

Unfortunately, we are reverting back to the Roman times, when people would gather to watch some poor soul be eaten by tigers for the mere amusement of the crowd.

Combat sports are not for the light of heart as they are not only dangerous but extremely violent to watch. If we take the art out of them, and allow popularity and money to dictate which matches are made, it is only a matter of time until someone is seriously harmed.

Let’s be honest, when your color commentary team is heavily dependent on Snoop Dogg’s contribution, it is time to take a look at your production as a whole.

Alas, it seems as though we will never learn, as UFC star Tyron Woodley will soon make the jump to boxing.

We need to keep the art of combat alive, and most importantly keep the men and women who dare to step into any ring safe.